As student preferences and motivations change, community colleges must remain nimble in their communications strategy in order to effectively convey their value. The first step in creating an impactful campus communications strategy is to audit your current practice.
Once you’ve audited your current practice, standardize your communications by creating a year-round calendar. Learn about the various touchpoints prospects receive in a sample “drip” marketing campaign after they submit an inquiry but before they apply. Discover how and when to send automatic, pre-planned communications to prospective students in practice six of The Shifting Enrollment Landscape.
Academic terminology confuses prospective students, lengthens their enrollment process, and frequently causes stop-outs. Determine where your institution uses jargon that may confuse prospective students and provide examples for how to create alternatives.
Use the Gunning Fog Index (GFI) to assess the readability of your new marketing materials and provide an exercise to help staff adopt jargon-free communication. Leaders should ensure messages to prospective students are tailored to each student segment and their level of understanding. Use strategy three of our Eliminating Enrollment Pain Points study to perform a jargon reduction audit.
Drawing upon industry best practices from across the public and private sectors, the web presence and online audit service provides Community College Executive Forum members with an objective assessment of their online presence and highlights areas of excellence and opportunities for targeted improvement. Contact your Strategic Leader to request an audit.
Community colleges boast genuine markers of educational value— they are well-connected to industry, they offer transfer pathways, and many have spent years crafting program maps…